


Summer of Love

by Orchidae



Series: Summer of Love [2]
Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: Domestic Bliss, Domestic Fluff, M/M, Thomas and Richard open an antiques shop, Thomas is quite enamoured with 60s counterculture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-20
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-12-27 00:42:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21109859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orchidae/pseuds/Orchidae
Summary: Thomas Barrow retires from service at long last and runs an antique shop with Richard Ellis. Meanwhile, the London of the 60s is undergoing a significant cultural shift.





	Summer of Love

They called it the Summer of Love, where all the young people seemed to converge on London in a series of music festivals and peace protests. A man of Thomas’s generation might have been shocked by their behaviour, their long hair, wild clothes and even wilder politics. However, Thomas wasn’t like other men of his generation and subsequently found himself charmed by their hope and idealism. His Lordship’s sons, Master Matthew and Master Robert were probably up to similar activities in Oxford, they were both very keen on the Rolling Stones and the Who, much to their father’s chagrin.

Thomas would miss them both almost as much at their father. Lord and Lady Grantham had taken a more involved approach with their children than their parents had, they had not employed a nanny and had sent them to a local preparatory school instead of employing a tutor. Still, Thomas had been there to entertain them and make them sandwiches and help them with their homework and had loved them as though they were his own grandchildren. He had been sad to leave, especially while they were away from home, but it was the right time. Thomas was experiencing his own summer of love. He had been seeing Richard in a long-distance relationship for almost forty years, but this was different. This was heaven. Domestic bliss.

Richard had retired from the Royal household back in the fifties and had invested his savings into opening an antique shop in Soho. It had seemed like a madcap idea, but he had a good eye and loved nothing more than trawling auctions and house clearances for hidden treasures. Once Thomas joined him, he realised that it was not especially difficult, he had been caring for antiques his whole career. He knew how to take care of silver, how to polish wood and fix a clock, could asses the quality of a gemstone and recognise the work of a noted artist or designer. So, they had fallen into it together, Richard handling the business side of things and Thomas making sure everything was in order and looking its best. Lately, they had added a few racks of vintage clothing to the shop floor and a makeshift changing room in what had once been a cupboard. They had been doing a roaring trade. Army jackets, white gloves, bowler hats, lace tea dresses, fur coats, all were repurposed and altered by the young hippies who bought them into outlandish creations. Thomas made a note to pay more attention to current fashions.

They had considered leaving the country together in the past, France being the obvious choice, but after what they had both seen in the war, neither of them was particularly keen on the idea. Besides, Richard was still close with his family, had even brought Thomas home on occasion when his parents had still been alive. He had introduced him as his friend, but everyone had known the truth of the matter and accepted them all the same. Thomas had never met a nicer family. Even now, there were scores of nephews and nieces that came to visit with their children, crowding the flat with their noise. They called them uncle Tom and uncle Dick, which would have normally irritated Thomas to no end, but surprisingly he found it quite funny, to the extent that when they discussed adopting a dog and ran into a spaniel named Harry at the shelter, they didn’t even need to talk it over. Thomas had never owned a dog before but often had to take care of his Lordship’s Labradors and aside from locking one of them in a shed in one of his stupid schemes he found he had an affinity for them. Dogs and children didn’t judge him and in turn, had always held a special place in his heart.

They should have done this years ago, thrown caution to the wind and flagrantly disobeyed the law. Thomas mourned all the years they had been forced to hide, all the years they had been kept apart. They still couldn’t show their affection in public, and it was difficult because trying not to kiss Richard or hold his hand was sometimes like trying not to cough. But it was all worth it to be able to live together without fearing a visit from the police. Their little flat was a sanctuary in an uncaring world. Long lazy Sundays spent in bed, reading together, sharing a bottle of wine at dinner, taking Harry for walks in Hyde Park. Richard might have grown greyer and skinnier with age but to Thomas, he was as handsome as the day they met with his matinee idol looks and a twinkle in his eye. Thomas had worried that once the novelty of living together had worn off, they wouldn’t get along anymore. They would bicker of course, over whose turn it was to wash the dishes and Richard’s tendency to steal the blankets, but Thomas’s worries were unfounded. If anything, they were making up for years of lost time, sometimes it was almost too much, but still, Thomas clung to it.

“Thomas, are you all right?” Richard asked from across the breakfast table.

“Sorry?”

“You were miles away.”

“I was just, thinking of you,” Thomas said bashfully.

“But I’m right here.” Richard chuckled.

Thomas felt as carefree as those beautiful boys and girls with flowers in their hair.


End file.
